LAX police on high alert after dry ice bomb incidents

Police at Los Angeles International Airport were on high alert Tuesday after officials found dry-ice bombs in employee-only areas of the facility on successive nights.

Another of the bombs exploded Monday night at about 8:20 p.m. on a ramp near Gate 148 at the new Tom Bradley International Terminal, a police source said. Two other bottles containing dry ice also were found, the source said, but neither one exploded.

Dry-ice bombs make loud popping noises when they explode, but they are not considered dangerous. No one was hurt on either Sunday or Monday, and no property was destroyed, police said.

In a dry-ice bomb, water and dry ice pellets are put inside a sealed container, like a soda bottle. Eventually, the reaction puts so much pressure on the bottle that it bursts. In May, part of Disneyland was briefly shut after a dry-ice bomb exploded there.

Sunday’s dry-ice bomb exploded in a bathroom stall in a Terminal 2 restroom accessible only to airport employees.

Terminal 2 and the Bradley Terminal handle most of the international flights at LAX, the nation’s second busiest airport.

In both instances, police response was swift, though there has been relatively little disruption in airport services. Both airport police and the LAPD bomb squad have been responding.

Members of the Los Angeles Police Department criminal conspiracy unit are investigating the incidents, a police official said. At noon Tuesday, an LAPD spokeswoman said there had been no arrests.

Sgt. Belinda Nettles, a spokeswoman for Los Angeles World Airports police, said officers were making extra patrols on airport ramps and public areas. She also asked passengers to be vigilant.

“Anybody can report suspicious activity,” Nettles said. “We don’t see everything. With everyone’s eyes looking for something that is suspicious, it helps us all out.”